Daily Fantasy NBA Basketball Picks for FanDuel, DraftKings and Draftster 12/22/14

Welcome to our daily fantasy basketball column - where we provide the best daily plays on a points per dollar basis.

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Point Guard

Dennis Schroder - FD 5000 DK 5400 DFSTR 3800
Totally and completely dependent on Teague being out again, but if Schroder is going to see starter minutes like he did on Saturday then you can slide him in without hesitation. My concern going into Saturday were the minutes. He had split them with Mackthe game before, but that had also been a blowout so I was unsure how the Hawks would handle the point guard duties. On Saturday they were happy to give Schroder 30 minutes of run. And though the Mavs are a solid team, with Rondo at PG now they will be susceptible to opposing point guard attack.

Patrick Beverley - FD 6200 DK 5900 DFSTR 5000
Tonight is a weird one as a bunch of solid defensive teams are rolling making the the value plays thin at best. You will probably be forced (outside of some punts emerging throughout the day) to play some midrange salary cap relief guys like Beverley in order to lighten the load. He's solid, if unspectacular, at these prices though he will face off against Damian Lillard who's no defensive stalwart. Beverley needs a great deal to go right in order to totally crush his price, but he has the benefit of seeing a ton of minutes at the point for this team. The run in itself makes him a nice cash game play.

Cory Joseph - FD 5100 DK 5200 DFSTR 3500
He has almost no upside. But that's built into his price. What he does have are the minutes. I'll admit it, I don't love this play. He does very little in the Spurs offense, but he is just on the court for so damn long with Parker out that I still think you need to consider him.

Strongly consider Ty Lawson

Shooting Guard

Wesley Matthews - FD 5500 DK 5500 DFSTR 5000
The price continues to drop on this guy for a very simple reason: he's been shooting below his career averages over the short term, especially from three. For his career Wes is nearly a 40% three point shooter. In the last month he's been shooting closer to 30%. That makes a big difference for a guy priced like he is. Basketball players, especially ones who've been around as long as Matthews, are nothing if not predictable. They tend to regress to the mean at some point. He will have a short stretch of solid shooting that will get his price back up meaning you are buying low on him now.

Monta Ellis - FD 8100 DK 7500 DFSTR 8200
One of the bigger questions around the Rondo trade is how Rajon would fit with a guy like Ellis who likes to have the ball in his hands a lot in order to create. If the first game is any indication, this could be a nice marriage. Ellis dropped 38 points in Rondo's first game as a Mav and didn't have to worry about getting any teammates involved (one assist). Granted, that kind of scoring won't be the norm for Monta. But Rondo should be able to get him the ball in advantageous spots and Monta just wants to score anyway.

If you think he sees anywhere close to the minutes he saw the other night you can consider Marco Belinelli

Small Forward

Gerald Henderson - FD 3900 DK 4300 DFSTR 3900
Price and opportunity. Price and opportunity. Price and opportunity. That's all you need to know about Hendo. With Stephenson out of the lineup he's seeing around thirty minutes a night with the starters and has played really well. He's averaging a 14/4/2 in those two games and the price has barely moved. Lance is still out meaning Gerald still has the time. This one is easy.

Wilson Chandler - FD 5800 DK 5600 DFSTR 5000
Had just a dreadful shooting game against Indiana on Saturday. I don't expect that to repeat here tonight. He's been nails this season and has been able to score and rebound enough for the Nuggets to pay these prices off. Charlotte's been kind of a mess against small forwards this season, allowing well over league average scoring to the position. Small forward is on the tougher side tonight after Henderson and I'm hoping some folks are turned off by Chandler's recent performance.

Trevor Ariza - FD 6000 DK 6400 DFSTR 5700
Our system has been crazy bull-ish on Ariza for some time now and that doesn't change tonight. What it hasn't factored in is how Corey Brewer will possibly cut into Ariza's minutes. This is a situation to monitor. Ariza had been playing crazy minutes but those might dip some now. Something to keep an eye on though I still think the price here is fair.

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Power Forward

Once again this is a real problem position. There are very few safe options. Most of the guys are either in terrible defensive matchups or have question marks about their minutes. It's tough sledding here.
Dirk Nowitzki - FD 7100 DK 6400 DFSTR 7700
Whereas Monta did all of the scoring for the new look Mavs, it wasn't from Dirk's lack of trying. Dude just had an off shooting night going 2-14 from the field. Atlanta, though they've controlled the scoring from opposing power forwards, have struggled in the other aspects of the game. I think Dirk's price has fallen to the point that he makes for a safe cash game play especially because you know their new point guard isn't totally interested in ever shooting the ball himself.

After Dirk I'm not at a total loss but I'm hesitant to make any definitive call about these guys. They all pose issues. But I'd consider Cody Zeller and Mareese Speights as low minute/low cost guys who are in decent matchups. Or you can spend up for Pau Gasol if you find yourself saving in other areas.

 

Center

DeMarcus Cousins - FD 10100 DK 10400 DFSTR 3200
He's back all right. We had him as a solid play against the Lakers yesterday and he crushed them. The Warriors are without Bogut which effects their interior presence. Granted, the Warrior are much, much better than the Kings and might just kill them to the point that Boogie doesn't see extended run. I would consider paying up in this position between Boogie and Al Jefferson below. So I think you are going to spend. The matchup for Cousins, on a man-to-man basis is a solid one. It's just the game flow that might stifle his upside. NOTE: If you haven't signed up for Draftster. Click on Boogie's price above. There's been a glitch and he's a minimum priced player tonight. Take advantage. 

Al Jefferson - FD 8700 DK 9000
On the season Denver is having an impossible time keeping the opposing center from scoring. They've allowed 14% more scoring than league average to the other team's big man and Jefferson's strength is getting the rack. His price is a big depressed of late, and this value isn't totally insane, but I like him as a safer play in a position, much like power forward, that lacks that true feel good play.

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